What exactly does Jesus do?
So you run into this problem if you step outside of Adventist/Christian circles. You discover people from all backgrounds who are really moral, kind, nice, giving, noble and in fact seem better than a lot of Adventists/Christians that you know.
(I say Adventist/Christian because some Adventist tend to think of even other Christians as bit less holy)
I do not intended to write about how we are just sooooo judgemental about those not like ourselves. Instead I want to look at the questions that the existence of good Non-Adventist/Non-Christian people raises in regards to the role of Jesus.
So.... "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." So does my Muslim friend who embodies all of these qualities has the Holy Spirit? No? Some Christians would agree, others not so much.
Lets say she is given the opportunity to accept Christ, and instead remains loyal to Islam? Do all her Spirit filled qualities fade away? If she retains those qualities, after rejecting Christ, what does that mean? I have a number of former SDA friends who are non-believers now, and yet still continue to be moral people. Is their separation from God eventually going to transform them into violent, drunken, wanton criminals. (I am looking at you Brian ;)
Are good people who are not Adventist/Christian just relying on their own goodness, their own works? If they experienced the grace of God would they be transformed to a whole new level?
Now let's take a look at people who have accepted Christ. I know some Christians who are missing a few qualities such as "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." In fact some would lean more towards being violent, drunken, wanton criminals. They accepted Christ, so why didn't he work his magic in their lives? Why didn't he transform them? If Jesus were some kind of magic wand then anyone who accepted him would be transformed. However, many who accept him are never transformed, and many who never accept him are.
Some Christians would argue that such people are saved, not matter what they do because of that acceptance of Christ. Others (hint hint SDAs) would say that by their un-Christlike behavior they are actually rejecting Christ and will loose their salvation unless they repent, daily, or even hourly/minutely. (side note: I tried this hourly repenting thing and it is a terrible way for a perfectionist/depressive person to live. Constantly reminding myself how I failed to live up to Christ's holy standard only made me paralyzed)
What I am really trying to nail down here is why I need Jesus. A good many people seem to think I do, but I really don't see what he is going to do for me.
I know I need love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. But I believe that being shown and practicing these things is what transforms me. I don't think they are the result of some magical bean sprouting inside my heart. I think Christians who are transformed for the better, are transformed because they are in community with others who practice the "fruits of the spirit" and they themselves practice as well. They give all the credit to God, but it is themselves and their community who deserve the credit.
If I choose to continue to call myself a Christian, it will be because I am practicing in the way of Jesus, and I have faith that the example he set can transform.
Now I know some might ask, where love, joy peace and such come from if not from God. To be honest, I don't know. Maybe they are the positive fruits of human evolution (Not to downplay the many negative fruits) and if they are then I choose to practice them because I can tangibly see how they benefit my life and the lives of those around me.
Another possibility I see is that there is something people call God/Jesus, which runs through the fabric of the universe and is the source of love. Mind you I have issues with a being who would allow all the suffering here on earth. However, if this is true, I think God allows all people to practice and be transformed by love and wouldn't expect them to wave some superstitious Jesus wand over their heads before they could be "saved"
I'm glad to be blogging again. Stay tuned for more.
(I say Adventist/Christian because some Adventist tend to think of even other Christians as bit less holy)
I do not intended to write about how we are just sooooo judgemental about those not like ourselves. Instead I want to look at the questions that the existence of good Non-Adventist/Non-Christian people raises in regards to the role of Jesus.
So.... "the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." So does my Muslim friend who embodies all of these qualities has the Holy Spirit? No? Some Christians would agree, others not so much.
Lets say she is given the opportunity to accept Christ, and instead remains loyal to Islam? Do all her Spirit filled qualities fade away? If she retains those qualities, after rejecting Christ, what does that mean? I have a number of former SDA friends who are non-believers now, and yet still continue to be moral people. Is their separation from God eventually going to transform them into violent, drunken, wanton criminals. (I am looking at you Brian ;)
Are good people who are not Adventist/Christian just relying on their own goodness, their own works? If they experienced the grace of God would they be transformed to a whole new level?
Now let's take a look at people who have accepted Christ. I know some Christians who are missing a few qualities such as "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control." In fact some would lean more towards being violent, drunken, wanton criminals. They accepted Christ, so why didn't he work his magic in their lives? Why didn't he transform them? If Jesus were some kind of magic wand then anyone who accepted him would be transformed. However, many who accept him are never transformed, and many who never accept him are.
Some Christians would argue that such people are saved, not matter what they do because of that acceptance of Christ. Others (hint hint SDAs) would say that by their un-Christlike behavior they are actually rejecting Christ and will loose their salvation unless they repent, daily, or even hourly/minutely. (side note: I tried this hourly repenting thing and it is a terrible way for a perfectionist/depressive person to live. Constantly reminding myself how I failed to live up to Christ's holy standard only made me paralyzed)
What I am really trying to nail down here is why I need Jesus. A good many people seem to think I do, but I really don't see what he is going to do for me.
I know I need love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. But I believe that being shown and practicing these things is what transforms me. I don't think they are the result of some magical bean sprouting inside my heart. I think Christians who are transformed for the better, are transformed because they are in community with others who practice the "fruits of the spirit" and they themselves practice as well. They give all the credit to God, but it is themselves and their community who deserve the credit.
If I choose to continue to call myself a Christian, it will be because I am practicing in the way of Jesus, and I have faith that the example he set can transform.
Now I know some might ask, where love, joy peace and such come from if not from God. To be honest, I don't know. Maybe they are the positive fruits of human evolution (Not to downplay the many negative fruits) and if they are then I choose to practice them because I can tangibly see how they benefit my life and the lives of those around me.
Another possibility I see is that there is something people call God/Jesus, which runs through the fabric of the universe and is the source of love. Mind you I have issues with a being who would allow all the suffering here on earth. However, if this is true, I think God allows all people to practice and be transformed by love and wouldn't expect them to wave some superstitious Jesus wand over their heads before they could be "saved"
I'm glad to be blogging again. Stay tuned for more.
Comments
I think God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are available to everyone, even if they aren't Christian. Christ said, "I stand at the door and knock." He didn't say that He only knocks on Christians' doors. I also think the Holy Spirit moves on everyone's hearts, gently showing them the love of God. Because of this, I believe that everyone, regardless of their religion or lack thereof, can demonstrate aspects of Christ's character (fruits of the Spirit).
I also believe that accepting Christ isn’t just about being baptized and then living like you were before. I think it was Paul who wrote “we love God because He first loved us.” When I decide that I want to be a Christian, that I accept God’s gift of salvation, I do that because I love God. And because I love God, I have decided that I want to be more like Him. Being more like God, or taking on His character, is summed up in both the Old and New Testaments as simply “love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. Love your neighbor as yourself.” Because I love God, and because I love the other people He loves, then I choose to treat everyone with kindness and respect. If I continue to treat people with disrespect, without love, then I have to examine my relationship with God and determine if I really love Him.
I don’t think needing Jesus is just about the fruits of the Spirit. I think it’s also about needing the gift of grace. God created man perfect. Man sinned. Because of that choice, man has separated himself from God, cut himself off from the source of all life. The Bible says that the wages of sin is death. When we cut ourselves off from the source of life, rejecting that source of life, we die. It isn’t because God wants us to die but because we’ve chosen to let go of Him. Someone had to step into that broken equation and fix it. Jesus volunteered to pay our penalty, the one we chose. He said that He will die so that we don’t have to. When He died and rose from the dead, that punishment was paid for in full. That’s why I choose to follow Christ. He loves me. I can’t help but love Him back.
“I have issues with a being who would allow all the suffering here on earth.” That’s another big question and one I’m studying right now. Ultimately, I think it comes down to free will. God gave us free will because forced love isn’t really love. God wants us to love Him because we want to, not because He made us. If we choose not to love God, then we’re also going to choose a path or a life that God wouldn’t necessarily want for us. And that free will means people are going to be hurt. Thankfully, it’s not the end of the story. The Bible shows that there is a life after this one without all the pain because people will choose to love God and love everyone else.